The Adventure Club Afloat eBook

“I meant a real island,” murmured Perry.
Ossie was about to argue the matter when footsteps
approached and they moved off again. A flight
of steps led to a stone-floored verandah and they
went up it and perched themselves on the parapet,
to the probable detriment of the ivy growing across
it, and watched the colourful scene. They were
quite alone there, for the porch was detached from
the terrace that crossed the front of the house.
Two French windows were opened and beyond them lay
a dimly-lighted library. Perry, hugging one foot
in his hands, looked in approvingly.

“Whoever owns this shanty knows what’s
what,” he said. “Just have a squint
at all those books, will you? Millions of them!
Wonder if anyone has ever read them.”

“Well, I’m glad I don’t have to,”
said Wink feelingly. “But that’s a
corking room, though. These folks must have slathers
of money, fellows.”

“Oh, fairly well fixed, I dare say,” responded
Perry carelessly. “Say, what time is it!
Feed begins at ten, and with all that mob down there
it’s the early bird that’s going to catch
the macaroons. Wonder if they’ll have lobster
salad.”

“Nothing but sandwiches and ices, I guess,”
said Ossie. “I wouldn’t object to
a steak and onions, myself. Funny how hungry you
get up in this part of the world.”

“You sure do,” agreed Wink. “Let’s
move along. If the Corwin family gets in there
ahead of us we might just as well pull in our belts
and beat it.”

“Let’s go in through here,” said
Perry. “It’s nearer, I guess.”
He started toward the first window.

“Oh, we’d better not,” Ossie objected.
“They might not like it.”

“Piffle! They’ll be tickled to death.
They like folks to see their pretties.”
He stepped through the window and, dubiously, his companions
followed. The library was a huge apartment, occupying,
as it seemed to them, more than half the length of
the house, with several long windows opening onto
the terrace at the front. The furnishings were
sombrely elegant and the dim lights caught the dull
polished surface of mahogany and glinted on the gold-lettered
backs of the shelf on shelf of books that hid the
walls. Deep-toned rugs rendered footsteps soundless
as they made their way toward the wide doorway at
the far end of the room. They had traversed barely
a third of the distance when a sudden sound brought
them up short.

One of the windows that opened onto the terrace further
along swung inward and a middle-aged man in evening
attire stepped into the room. Perry, in spite
of his former assurance, drew back into the shadow
of a high-backed chair, stepping on Wink’s foot
and bringing a groan from that youth. The newcomer,
however, evidently failed to hear Wink’s protest,
for, closing the window behind him in a stealthy manner,
he crossed the further end of the library and paused
beside a huge stone fireplace. Wink and Ossie